No good deed goes unpunished! When Morvash of the Shadows, a journeyman wizard, discovers some of the statues in his uncle's house are real people turned to stone, he sets out to do the right thing. But turning them back is a bigger challenge than he anticipated.... Darissa the Witch's Apprentice wants to help a prince of Melitha defend their homeland against an invasion. But there's more to both of them than meets the eye.... Hakin of the Hundred-Foot Field dares to speak to a demon -- and abruptly finds himself employed to find the demon's employer, a missing magician...and learns the name of his father.... Before long, these reluctant heroes find their separate fates entwined. For they are the only ones standing in the way of a mad wizard's scheme that could unleash the greatest monster Ethshar has ever seen!